The Evolution of Death: Why We Are Living LongerIn The Evolution of Death, the follow-up to Becoming Immortal: Combining Cloning and Stem-Cell Therapy, also published by SUNY Press, Stanley Shostak argues that death, like life, can evolve. Observing that literature, philosophy, religion, genetics, physics, and gerontology still struggle to explain why we die, Shostak explores the mystery of death from a biological perspective. Death, Shostak claims, is not the end of a linear journey, static and indifferent to change. Instead, he suggests, the current efforts to live longer have profoundly affected our ecological niche, and we are evolving into a long-lived species. Pointing to the artificial means currently used to prolong life, he argues that as we become increasingly juvenilized in our adult life, death will become significantly and evolutionarily delayed. As bodies evolve, the embryos of succeeding generations may be accumulating the stem cells that preserve and restore, providing the resources necessary to live longer and longer. If trends like this continue, Shostak contends, future human beings may join the ranks of other animals with indefinite life spans. |
Contents
| 1 | |
Part I How Biology Makes Sense of Death | 5 |
Part II How Death Evolves and Where It Is Heading | 105 |
Afterword | 151 |
Different Forms of Life and Death | 161 |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
According activity additional adult animals become beginning biological birth body causes cell division cellular chapter cohort complex continue course curve cycle cytoplasm death decline determined differentiation disease distribution divide dying early edited effects embryonic environment et al eukaryotic evolution evolve example expectancy fact female fertilization Figure forms function genes genetic germ cells germ line growth hand hence human immortal increased individuals known less life’s lifecycle lifetime living living things longevity loss male material mean mortality moving multicellular Nature neoteny normal notion organisms origin particular period play population possibility potential present Press problem produce rates reduced remain replacement reproduction result role Science senescence sexual soma somatic span species stages statistics stem cells suggests telomeres thermodynamics tion tissues typically United University virtually York young
Popular passages
Page 227 - Gearhart, JD (1998). Derivation of pluripotent stem cells from cultured human primordial germ cells.